In a clever marketing ploy, games manufacturer Hasbro has been encouraging internet users to vote for the county they'd like to see make it on to one of the new playing board's 22 squares. The 10 counties with the lowest vote will lose out.

Voting ended at midnight on Friday and all the indications are that like the general election the outcome remained in doubt up to the last minute. The exact results will remain a tightly guarded secret until the new game, which will be manufactured at the firm's Waterford factory, goes on sale in early October.

"In previous versions rankings of individual squares were determined by real property values. So places like Shrewsbury Road and Ailsbury Road had the highest rankings, " Hasbro's national sales manager Anne Dermody explains. "This time round it's all down to people power. Factors like actual property values and real population levels don't count. It all depends on the popular vote.

"Some of the smaller counties have come out of the blocks at speed. Places like Roscommon and Leitrim have figured prominently. I think the county manager in Roscommon had a real passion for getting on the board and he inspired a lot of interest in the county."

The first Irish edition of Monopoly was produced 30 years ago. An updated version introduced in 2005 included new landmarks like the Spire and the Dundrum shopping centre as well as the Luas.

"We expect the new board to attract international attention as it's an all-Ireland game, " Dermody says.

"There's a tourism dimension to it too. We'll be taking soundings from people like Bord Failte when deciding what local image would best represent the counties that do make it.

"People have been hugely creative in their efforts to promote their county.

They've been using the internet and text messaging as well as local radio to inform their friends about the game.

"I heard that in one area there were actually more Monopoly posters than general election posters on display."